


Totally platonic workout buddies

by CatchyArtz



Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: (not in the sexy way), Coming Out, M/M, Roleplay, lavashipping - Freeform, written-by-two-authors roleplay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-12
Updated: 2019-04-12
Packaged: 2020-01-12 00:50:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18435605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatchyArtz/pseuds/CatchyArtz
Summary: Cole invites Kai to a workout session. The two are crushing on each other but don't know it (yet)!Skylor provides some much needed third party assistance.





	Totally platonic workout buddies

**Author's Note:**

> [sodasyrup](https://sodasyrup.tumblr.com/) on tumblr as Kai and Skylor  
> CatchyArtz as Cole

It was a pleasantly mellow spring morning— perfect weather for a run. Cole was sitting at a bench in Ninjago Park under the shade of a tree, waiting for Kai to arrive. The fiery hothead was lucky he didn’t mind the down time. It allowed him to enjoy the light breeze, sweet with a rosey scent, and admire the greenery of the lawns around him. During this time of year, flowers bloomed all over the park, dotting the landscape with specks of color. A few white petals drifted down from the tree Cole was seated under every time a breeze shook its leaves, which he brushed off his head every so often. His thick black hair was strung into a ponytail, an orange headband wrapped around his head to keep his bangs from falling too far into his face. Cole reminded himself not for the first time that he should get it trimmed soon. The length was proving to be a bit of an issue during workouts.

And speaking of hair...

Cole spotted Kai striding into the park grounds from the street, who shot his signature shit-eating grin at Cole as they made eye contact. He had his hair gelled up in wild spikes as usual, which Cole couldn’t help but snicker at. As soon as Kai was in earshot, Cole remarked, “You did your hair? Aren’t you just gonna sweat it out?”

Kai jogged through the park, a simple warm-up before training as he scanned the area for his friend.  
Personally he didn't care too much about the view, as long as the air isn't stuffy (like at the gym or the dojo when the team works out together; God he wished Jay would shower more,) training was training - he enjoyed the dull pain of a good exercise and hanging with his team was always, well, _usually_ fun. 

Despite the decent weather, over his simple tank top and loose shorts, his letterman was still wrapped over his shoulders; although he barely broke a sweat. Easily adjusted to high temperatures for... obvious reasons.  
He wasn’t exactly sure what they were going to do in the park, maybe spar? Jog? Yoga? Is Cole a yoga guy?  
Kai continued to ponder about Cole and odd exercise routines as he made his way through the park, stuck in his head until he finally saw Black.

Grinning dumbly he approached Cole, then proceeded to dramatically pout at Cole’s comment on his hair - brushing a hand ever so carefully through the spikes.  
“You're so mean to me,” His smile immediately setting pace back upon his face as he struck a dramatic pose.  
“It's called self love, Gotta look my best even walking to a workout!” He exclaimed a bit too loud than needed, proceeding to shrug his bag off his shoulder and place it next to Cole to dig out a water bottle.

That made Cole laugh a little harder as he stood up from the bench to begin some simple stretches. As he dropped gradually into a twist lunge, Cole sighed quietly. It felt nice to get some fresh air, and the stretch strained his muscles pleasantly. He enjoyed physical activity arguably more than any of his fellow ninja. Before Sensei Wu began training them, Cole already routinely exercised. Exerting himself physically meant that any troubles plaguing his mind would fade away, replaced by solid determination and the racing of an active heart. It was an escape from life’s troubles as well as a practical hobby. Now he felt no different.

Straightening to begin a few arm stretches, he addressed Kai. “You up for a run?”

Kai took a sip of water to hide the pleased smile he wore, he liked making his friends laugh. He liked making _Cole_ laugh.

Taking off his jacket, he folded it carefully and tucked it in his empty bag, having previously only been holding the water bottle - putting said bottle away, too.

Expecting a long "run" when it came to Cole the literal mountain; he didn't want to keep on his favorite jacket.  
"You know it," He replied with a wink "Just try to keep up, rock head."

After pulling his backpack over his shoulders again (not trusting to leave his stuff in the open.) he stretched his arms, letting his joints pop with a grunt before impatiently bouncing in place for Cole.

Cole raised an eyebrow at Kai, silently judging his choice not to stretch. The fire elemental was as restless as the flames he controlled. Cole finished his stretches shortly after Kai got situated, and stepped onto the dirt path next to him. “Piece of cake,” he remarked with an easy smile. “Just try to take it slow, alright? We’re going for long distance today, not sprints.”

Kai made sure to keep extra focus on looking anywhere _but_ towards Cole stretching, since he's not a Bisexual Disaster™.  
Unable to stop a snort at Cole's first comment, mumbling a soft "You and your cake," under his breath before lightly punching the other on the arm in a childish manner.

"Duh! I know how to jog, Cole!" He complained despite Cole's valid reasoning for warning him.  
Pout on his lips as he took a few steps backwards, a quick switch to a challenging smile as he turned on his heel and began to jog without warning.

Cole let out a half-hearted “hey!” as Kai took off without a word, catching up with a few strides. The two quickly found a rhythm they were both comfortable with and fell into it.

Despite training and fighting together, the ninja rarely got a chance to go on normal, casual jogs. It was a nice change of pace, and Cole noticed for the first time just how good a runner Kai was. His lithe and light frame allowed him to easily keep up with Cole in spite of having a shorter stride.

A laugh bubbled in Kai's throat at Cole's yell, bouncing on his feet as he fell into place next to his friend.  
Working on keeping his breathing even as he occasionally stole glances at Cole.  
"Told you I could keep up," He boasted, still barely breaking a sweat at the barebones training, it was nothing compared to what Master Wu made them do! 

But it was nice, the fresh air and blooming nature almost made everything feel like a cheesy hollywood movie with how perfect it all looked.

“For how long?” Cole responded, shooting Kai a challenging grin. The perimeter of the park was large— easily over a mile. The plan was to go multiple laps. He wondered just how far Kai could make it before having to stop. Of course, his pride would probably keep him going until he passed out, but Cole wasn’t going to let that happen.

Of course the jab went directly into Kai's aforementioned pride, one hand curling into a fist and lightly punching the earth elemental again as he pouted, bottom lip jutting out dramatically.  
"Who do you think I am, Jay?" He huffed in annoyance, pout turning to a wicked smile as he entertained if he should just leave Cole in the dust.

"Shouldn't be so cocky, Cole; It wouldn't be hard to leave you behind."

To be perfectly honest, Cole didn't doubt it. Kai was always faster than him when it came to short distances, but in this situation that wouldn't matter all that much. The fire ninja would only tire himself out, and Cole would be able to catch up again eventually.

"Always about instant gratification," Cole remarked with a smile, turning away from Kai to focus on the path ahead once more. "Didn't I _just_ tell you to take it slow?"

Kai huffed in annoyance, nose scrunching up as frowned; deciding the best course of action was to lightly shove Cole again.  
Oh how he wanted to throttle the Earth ninja right now.

Turning ahead like his friend, Kai mumbled something under his breath and silently sulked as he continued, not exactly having a good retort at the moment.

Cole’s smile evolved into a chuckle as Kai shoved at him. He almost considered nudging him back, but restrained himself. Cole had learned to be more careful with his strength since gaining his elemental powers, and the last thing he wanted was his friend to be thrown back so hard he fell.

The two ran in relative silence without stopping for a little over a lap when Cole heard the beginnings of a pant start beside him. He shot a glance over at Kai to see how he was doing, slowing his pace just barely— hopefully too little to be noticeable. The brunette was struggling to breathe deeply and steadily, and his form had begun to weaken. There was a flush to his face as well— thankfully not too bad, but worse than Cole who was only sweating.

“Tell me when you need to start walking,” Cole spoke up, averting his concerned gaze as he did. Kai would kill him if he caught him looking at him like that.

Kai kept up his silence, doing pretty well with his breathing (he'd been practicing breathing techniques much to Zane's delight.) which honestly helped a lot more than he cared to admit. Doing pretty well until he wasn't - he could feel his limbs becoming heavier with every step.  
He wiped the sweat from his brow, ignoring the slightly uncomfortable feeling of his damp fringe pressed to his face as he blinking the sweat out of his eyes.

"I'm fine." Came the dry reply, nails digging into his palms as he continued. Thankfully ignorant to Cole's concerned gaze or the slight decrease of their pace.  
His face burned a bright red, matching the colour assigned to his element, and scrunched up almost endearingly as he forced himself to continue - eyes still focused ahead and filled with determination.

Cole let Kai keep running for a little before making the decision to slow down for him, since he quite obviously wasn’t going to make it himself. He silently hoped Kai wouldn’t keep going as his pace eased gradually into a brisk walk.

“Y’know, pushing yourself is good, but there’s always such a thing as too much.”

Despite his ego, Kai slowed down too, catching his breath as he threaded his hands through his hair to brush it back out of his face - now sporting a slicked back style that contrasted his usual spikes. Cole was sort of right about him sweating out the gel.

"Shut up," He wheezed out, considering throwing another light punch but deciding it wasn't worth the energy spent.  
"Ninja never quit." He quoted, shooting Cole a glare with little impact. The red on his cheeks causing his light freckles to stand out more than usual along with his messy backswept hair. Overall he just looked sweetly pitiable.

Cole looked over at Kai upon hearing his voice, and was instantly struck with how... attractive he looked. He could count the amount of times he’d seen Kai without his hair gel on one hand, and although they’d fought together many times, it was often with their masks on. Right now, Cole could see every bit of Kai in full detail, from his cute, subtle freckles to his fair skin, glistening with a thin layer of sweat. Aand he should probably stop staring before Kai noticed. Cole felt a light blush coming on, grateful that his darker complexion could hide it.

 

“You know what ninja also never do?” Cole asked after clearing his throat. “Leave their friends behind.”

Catching Cole's eyes, his pout turned into an almost shy smile,

"You caught up!" He defended lamely in reference to the beginning of their run. Unable to stop the laugh that bubbled from him, flashing a toothy grin towards Cole.

"Fine, fine you win I'll take a break when we reach the bench again." He promised, wiping again at his face and hair.

That got Cole to smile in satisfaction. He patted Kai solidly on the back to let him know he did good.

Once the pair reached the bench, Cole sat down and took off his headband. His sweat had mostly dissipated on the walk back, so there was nothing for his hair to stick to as he let it drop around his face. Blowing a black strand out of his eyes, Cole leaned back against the bench and passively watched Kai as he shrugged off his backpack.

Kai hummed softly at the contact, something odd fluttering in his chest. God what was he, a dog? Mentally telling himself to get a grip he continued at an even pace until he got to the bench -Tossing his bag on the seat first to get out his bottle before scooting it onto the ground with a soft 'thwump.'

It took him only a moment to take a few large gulps of water before he haphazardly poured some over his face, sighing lazily at the feeling of liquid cooling skin. His hair beginning to curl slightly now freed of it's gelled prison and drying of sweat - Water almost seeming to steam off of the fire elemental as he shot Cole another crooked smile.

Cole could’ve sworn Kai looked at him like that on _purpose_ , head slightly tilted and eyes lidded almost seductively. There was indeed a subtle steam rising from the fire ninja’s skin, a quiet hissing accompanying it. But the swoop of his hair now curling at the tips made Cole snort.

“You look like a bird,” Cole chuckled.

He couldn't quite place the expression on Cole's face as they met eyes, quickly forgetting about it at Cole's comment.  
"Hey!“ he complained, sitting up and deciding to spray Cole with a splash of water from his bottle in retaliation. 

" I do NOT, " Kai continued, but despite his complaints he couldn't stop the smile on his face as he mirrored Cole's giggle.

Cole brought up his hands to block the spray, but mostly failed. He made a noise of dismay as water got all over his face and hair and dribbled into his tank top.

“Unlike you, Kai, I don’t enjoy the feeling of damp clothes,” Cole groaned, shaking droplets of water off his hands. “And you do _to_ look like a bird. Like one of those white ones. A cockatoo?” He laughed again. “Cocky, like you!”

Kai laugh was cut short as he groaned again, dropping his bottle inside his bag to instead try and style his hair to something more acceptable - thankful his face was already red from the run so his slight blush went, hopefully, unnoticed. 

At the second comment, the one about being cocky, he abandoned his honestly useless attempt to revive his spikes to instead reach over and try to smother Cole's mouth with his hand; wrestling against Cole to forcefully shut the other ninja up.

Cole started laughing harder against Kai's hand as he was tackled, giggles shaking his body and making resistance a little harder. The two play wrestled until Cole shoved Kai in a playful attempt to push him off, but the brunette's hand fisted in the fabric of his tank top and the two went tumbling to the ground. Cole groaned as he pushed himself up onto his hands and stared down at his friend's face that was... close. Too close. He was acutely aware of a few strangers staring, cold fear gripping his heart and refusing to let him move off of Kai.

Kai cackled loudly as he was shoved, landing with a soft "oof" and taking a moment to regain his winded breath between giggles, smiling dumbly up at Cole seemingly ignorant to the eyes on them.

Smile dropping as he noticed Cole freeze in place, brotherly instinct kicking in, Kai reaching up to gently pat the side of Cole's face in a hopefully comforting manner. It worked with Nya.  
"Still in there bud?" he asked in an uncharacteristically gentle voice.

Cole blinked at the feeling of Kai's hand against his cheek, his mind finally catching up to what was happening as he scrambled to stand up and off of Kai. He stood staring at the fire ninja for a few seconds before his mind urged him to _help him up, idiot_. Shaking his head as if to disperse the intrusive thought, Cole reached out a hand for Kai. "Sorry," he managed.

To say he looked confused was an understatement, sitting up when Cole scrambled back as if Kai had burned him, wait, did he burn Cole!?

"Did I-" Kai questioned vaguely, looking between his hand and Cole; even more confused when Cole offered a hand.  
He took it nonetheless, letting Cole help him up before brushing himself off as he got the worst of the fall.

"It's okay man, you alright?"

Cole caught the look of alarm that flashed across Kai's face before it gave way to confusion, rushing over his words to try and correct this situation. "Oh, no, yeah. I'm fine." Cole refused to look anywhere but at Kai, reaching up to nervously finger the back of his neck. Embarrassment and something else Cole refused to acknowledge caused his face to flush furiously. "Are you?"

Kai's eyes furrowed furthur in confusion as he noticed the dark red across Black’s cheeks, reaching out one hand to gently grab Cole's chin and make Cole look at him before sliding up to cup the boys cheek, other hand gently placing itself on Cole's forehead.

"You're hot." Kai stated simply, pulling his hands away, the one on Cole's cheek lingering before he stepped back. 

Quickly realising his actions Kai glanced away, forgetting he doesn't _need_ to take care of the other ninja. Habits die hard he guessed.  
"Duh, we just went running," He reprimanded himself, laughing off the intimate gesture.  
"We're both warm."

Cole stopped breathing when Kai tilted his chin towards him. The earth elemental's eyes shifted reluctantly to lock with Kai's, and once he did he couldn't seem to look away. Cole could see flecks of gold in Kai's otherwise rich brown eyes which were delicately almond shaped. He felt like he was drowning in them. Had his eyes always been that pretty? The words Kai was speaking sounded so far away. As his warmth drew away, Cole found himself resisting the urge to follow the hands. Instead, he blinked a few times in an attempt to snap himself out of it.

"Yeah. Sorry, I'm just..." Cole trailed off. Embarrassed? Really fucking gay? He had no idea how to finish that sentence, so he abandoned it completely. "Do you wanna eat something?" God, that was even worse. It sounded like he was asking Kai on a date.

Kai couldn't help but snort, tilting his head as his signature lopsided grin came back to his lips.  
"We only ran awhile, this is what you call training?“

Before Cole could respond though, Kai zipped his bag up and slung it over his shoulder - grabbing Cole by the elbow and tugging him along.

" C'mon you big lug, let’s find somewhere to eat. You're _always_ hungry I swear,"

Cole tensed slightly as Kai took him by the arm, but forced himself to relax when he noticed the other seemed completely casual about the contact. He finally felt the flustered haze he was in lifting with each step they took. "I'm always hungry _because_ I'm a 'big lug'," Cole remarked with a smile. "You try having all this muscle." To accentuate his point, Cole flexed the arm not being held by Kai.

He laughed at Coles comment, laugh fading out as his eyes flickered to flexed muscle, grip on Coles other arm tightening oh so slightly as he momentarily thought about feeling the bicep, imagination flicking to how easy Cole could carry him, Coles hands on his waist as he sat on his lap- Nope, nuh-uh. moving on.

Clearing his throat he looked back in front of them before he tripped, slowing his pace to walk next to Cole instead of pulling him along.  
Yet he didn't let go of the others arm.

"You just got lucky with genetics, everything about you is huge!"  
Kai prayed to whatever god there was the burning at the tip of his ears and on his cheeks wasn't as noticeable a blush as it felt.

“Nope, all of this came from sheer hard work,” Cole said, chuckling. He thought he could make out the faint tint of a blush on Kai’s face, but dismissed the thought as soon as it came.

"I doubt you exercised your height," Kai complained childishly, subconsciously moving from holding Cole's arm to linking it with his as he led the way; eyes quickly landing on Chen's noodle house.  
"Oh hey! In the mood for some noodles?" He exclaimed excitedly, already pulling Black towards the front doors.

Cole was _always_ in the mood for noodles, especially from Chen’s Noodle House. But after the day’s confusing events, he suspected seeing Skylar would only complicate things further. Were she and Kai still dating? Had they ever even started? Cole had no idea— and thinking about it made his head (and heart) hurt. Thankfully, he didn’t need to think about it any longer because Kai had just _linked their arms_ and was already dragging him along to the building.

“You know me.” Cole smiled down at Kai. “Always up for some noodles!”

"Glutton." Kai joked, shoving open the front doors and grinning as he saw the familiar redhead owner.  
Truthfully they had broken up as quietly as they had started dating; Skylor figuring out she liked girls and Kai... well... He wasn't exactly straight, either.  
Deciding not to make a scene (she'd scolded him before for that) he instead chose to sit down. It wasn't hard to find a booth away from most other customers - practically dragging his friend into the squishy seating next to him before realizing their arms were still linked and made it a bit difficult for Cole to slide in with him.

"Sorry," Kai laughed, quickly picking up a menu to hide behind.

 

Cole hummed in response, taking a seat next to his friend. They were almost close enough to touch. He propped a hand on his chin as he watched the conveyer belt bring different food along until a particularly enticing bowl of noodles passed by. He reached in front of Kai to grab it, laughing as his arm hit the other’s menu in the process.

“Sorry, I should probably move.” Cole got up to sit across from Kai instead, bringing the bowl with him. He missed the closeness of being seated next to each other, but now he could see the fire elemental in all his glory, if it weren’t for the menu his face was buried in. Cole grabbed a pair of chopsticks and used the end of it to silently push the menu down. He offered Kai a smile. “Conveyer belt, dude, remember?”

Kai almost reached out to grab Cole to stop him moving away, instead simply grasping his menu tighter.  
Opting to laugh away the weird feeling in his stomach he "read" the menu, not even registering any words when Cole pushed the paper down.

"Maybe I want something specific," He bluffed, despite his protest shoving the menu to the side and watching the bowls roll past, humming softly as he, after being VERY picky about his meal, grabbed a bowl a few minutes later.

Cole hadn’t even really noticed how hungry he was until he started eating, downing the entire bowl by the time Kai had picked one out for himself. He reached for another and, feeling more satisfied, ate it at the same pace as Kai. Cole made an pleased noise in the back of his throat, slurping up another bite of noodle. He leaned back after swallowing the mouthful, sighing happily. “No matter how many times we come here it always hits the spot.”

"I'm not paying for yours," Kai couldn't help but mumble around a mouthful of noodles as Cole grabbed a second bowl, but there was little venom behind the words.  
He did hum in agreement at Cole's statement though - a few minutes of eating before he started shuffling out of his seat almost urgently.  
"Bathroom," he excuse himself curtly, giving Black no time to respond as he sped off.

Cole turned to watch Kai hurry to the restroom in the back before returning swiftly to his meal. He was planning on paying for the both of them, so Kai didn’t need to worry about that. After all, Cole was the one who invited the fire elemental to come work out with him in the first place.

Cole was so engrossed in his meal he didn’t notice Skylar approaching until she was right beside the table smiling down at him. A pang of anxiety struck his chest, though he wasn’t sure why in the moment. He looked up, finishing his current mouthful, and offered the redhead a soft smile of his own. “Hey, Skylar.”

"Hey,"  
Skylor smiled down at Cole, putting her pen into her front pocket and notebook in her apron to have a quick chat as the restaurant died down.

"So how are you two lovebirds going?" She teased lightly, sad to have just missed Kai, oh how she'd have loved to tease her best friend about walking into her store arms linked.

“Lovebirds?” Cole echoed with a nervous laugh. If Skylar was joking so openly about that, did that mean she wasn’t dating Kai? “Not at all. But uh, we’re doing alright. Just went on a run. How have you been?”

She tilted her head curiously in response, a confused expression crossing her face for a moment before her warm smile was back in place.  
"Sorry! Just assumed since you two came in with linked arms." Skylor couldn't help but laugh slightly - Skylor and Kai briefly dated, but opted instead to be, in Kais words, "BFFs." Charming idiot.

"I'm well, running this place gets a little tricky but I enjoy the challenge. Plus people love the food." She motioned vaguely to the two bowls Cole had taken already; Her eyes flicking to the unfinished bowl across from Cole.  
"Kai run off somewhere?"

Oh god, Skylar had seen them walk in? Cole felt his face flush with embarrassment. He wanted nothing more than to bury himself in the earth and never emerge, but opted instead to nod along politely as Skylar spoke.

“He went to the restroom,” Cole answered, going for a sip of water.

She tsked her tongue softly, throwing a glance towards the restrooms.  
"Not even a hello," Tone mock annoyance, clearly warm hearted towards the fire elemental.

Eyes flicking back, she noticed the flush upon Coles cheeks - and Skylor couldn't help the mischievous glint in her eyes as she leaned on the table casually.  
"So you gonna ask him out?" She asked calmly, her tone akin to asking for salt across the dinner table not absolutely exposing how gay Cole clearly was. "Since you're practically on a date, already."

Cole very nearly choked on the water mid-gulp, the unexpected question sending him into a coughing fit.

“W-what? Ask him... no that couldn’t— he’s not- Is he?” Cole sputtered, the half-question directed mostly to himself as he felt his face grow impossibly warmer. Skylar probably knew Kai a lot better than him. It made the earth ninja a little jealous. The two knew each other for a lot less time than the rest of the ninja, yet she had grown closer to Kai then any of them (save for Nya, of course). “...It doesn’t matter. I couldn’t.”

She gave a humored chuckle, smothering it with her hand.  
"Is he what? Gay? No, But he is bi." She answered casually as if this wasn't a massive revelation for Cole.  
Straightening up (unlike Kai), she pulled out her pen and notebook again as she turned to a familiar brunette approaching.

"Sky!"  
"Hey Kai," She greeted, giving him a short hug before walking past him.  
"I gotta get back to work but enjoy the noodles." She smiled, shooting Cole a wink before walking back to the kitchen as Kai slid back into his seat.  
"Aw, bye!" Kai practically whined, having missed a chat with Skylor, then turning to Cole as he picked up his chopsticks. "So what'd I miss?"

Cole’s heartbeat picked up as Kai took his seat across from him once more. He desperately willed the furious blush on his cheeks to go away, hands clenching under the table and his meal all but forgotten.

“Nothing. She couldn’t talk for long,” Cole managed. He gave himself a mental pat on the back for keeping his voice from squeaking, although his eyes were as wide as saucers as he stared at Kai. Bi Kai. Kai was bi! The disclosure made Cole feel lightheaded— _In a good way_ , he decided.

Kai couldn't help but narrow his eyes at Cole, specifically the surprised expression, feeding noodles into his mouth slowly and chewing as he looked at Cole suspiciously.

"Did she say something about me?" He accused around his mouthful; absolutely not trusting his best friend talking alone with Cole considering the amount of stuff he's shared with her.  
Though he doubt Skylor would just... tell Cole he's got a crush, no she's not that mean. But she probably said SOMETHING.

Cole swallowed thickly. He had a couple options here. Deny very badly and make Kai even more suspicious, or tell him up front. He decided to go with the latter. “She... she said you’re... bi?” The statement came out more like a question.

Kai almost choked on his food, taking a moment to actually swallow before taking a strained breath; turning a bright red as he stared at his suddenly very interesting noodles.  
"Ah," He said softly, shifting uncomfortably under Coles gaze.

"Yeah," he choked out, clearing his throat as he sat silent for a moment.  
"Yeah I like, uh. Yanno some guys are cute. It never came up since-" He cut himself off, clearing his throat again as he rubbed the back of his neck. 'since I've never gotten the courage to ask you out.' be thought before finishing with a simple "Yeah."

“It’s okay,” Cole blurted. “You don’t have to feel nervous, or embarrassed ‘cause-“ There is was again. That suffocating fear. It felt like something was strangling him— keeping him from speaking no matter how hard he tried. What if Kai already knew? What if saying this wouldn’t even matter? Kai couldn’t like him back. He was so smooth and casual about this stuff. If he liked Cole, it would’ve been clear long ago.

Cole took a shallow breath, fighting to get past his fear. He opened his mouth and the words spilled out before he could think to regret it. “I’m gay.”

"Holy shit." came the impulse response, immediately regret gripping at Kais stomach and making him smother his mouth with his hands.  
He had absolutely considered Cole was maybe gay, but always brushed it off as his own hopes.

"I mean- uh." He mumbled from between his fingers; ducking his head slightly and resting his hands on the table.  
"Cool... cool cool cool cool cool." He continued, tapping his fingers against the table as he continued to look anywhere but at Cole.  
"I'm Bi with a preference for guys." Another beat of silence.  
"Buuut you already kinda knew that." He added, laughing awkwardly at his weird second-confession.

Cole gave a weak “mhm” in response. He hadn’t noticed but as Kai was talking he’d begun to tug at strands of his hair nervously. Twisting a lock around his finger, Cole let the silence taper on for a few more moments. What even was there to say after this? He didn’t want anything to change between them. Well, maybe he did, but he didn’t want their friendship to get screwy with this mutual exchange of information.

But Kai was being uncharacteristically awkward at the moment, and that made Cole feel a little better. At least he wasn’t alone in not knowing what the hell to do.

“Soo... what now?”

Kai stared dumbly at his lukewarm noodles now, chewing his lip as the silence dragged on.  
It was different with Cole, when he met Skylor or the cheerleader girl he didn't know them, there was no risk of ruining a relationship already set in place.

Brushing a hand through his hair he kept his gaze away from Cole as he hummed in acknowledgement at Cole's question.

"Finish eating? " He offered lamely, in a mental war if he should hit on Cole or just leave it.

“Now _that’s_ something I can do,” Cole joked in an attempt to ease the tension. He noticed Kai still wasn’t looking at him, so he reached over after a moment of hesitation and patted his friend’s cheek softly. “Still in there bud?” He mimicked Kai’s earlier words.

Before he could even think about it, Kai placed his own hand over Cole's and let his eyes shut for a moment, allowing himself to take a moment to relax, finding comfort in the hand cupping his face now.  
'It's _Cole._ '  
He reminded himself, Opening his eyes and giving the other a toothy, lopsided grin.  
'Goofy, cute Cole who loves soft rock and food and wouldn't let sexuality get in the way of a friendship.'  
"Yeah, I'm here." Kai replied gently.

Cole's heart fluttered at Kai leaned into his touch, cupping his hand with his own. He smiled warmly back at Kai and after lingering for just a second longer then he needed to, withdrew his hand.

"Glad to hear it."

He leaned back and looked at their two unfinished bowls which had long since cooled down to room temperature. "Don't suppose you could heat these up?" Cole half joked, grinning at Kai. "I mean, noodles are great at any temperature but I just prefer things hot." The earth elemental winked. He suddenly felt very inexplicably brave, and prayed to whatever god there might be that he hadn't overstepped any boundaries.

Kai let the others hand slide from his grip, holding in a sigh at the lack of contact.  
_He_ was the fire elemental and yet wherever Cole touched him felt so warm afterwards.  
His chest felt even warmer when Cole winked at him, tips of his ears turning red as he let out an embarrassed giggle. How was _Cole_ being the smooth one now? Kai couldn't tell if it was a joke or not but like hell he'd back down from a challenge.

Leaning forwards he wrapped his hands around Cole's bowl and picked it up, allowing his hands to heat up until it was once again steaming, blowing gently on the steam with lidded eyes before putting it back down.  
"Careful, Cole. You might get burned."  
With a smirk he stuck out his tongue and touched it with a finger, a soft hiss emitting from the contact.

Cole snorted when Kai touched his tongue, causing a _tssss_ sound. “You’re so gross,” Cole groaned, picking up his chopsticks. He was smiling despite the complaint, though.

"I am not!" Kai defended, a false hurt tone in his voice despite his massive grin.  
"I'm sexy," He stated confidently, warming up his hands again to reheat his own noodles.

“Sure,” Cole snorted, beginning to dig into his meal once more. “And I’m straight.” It seems years of repressed homosexuality was being released in the form of bad jokes.

Kai frowned at Cole's joke, kicking him lightly under the table.  
"I am! You're just mean and blind." He huffed, stirring his noodles before taking a mouthful.  
"Speaking of... that though," he mumbled, finishing his mouthful before he continued.  
"Who uh... like, who else knows?"

“Ow!” Cole exclaimed at Kai’s kick. Not that it actually hurt; Kai would have to try very hard to hurt him.

“Oh um, no one really. My dad. And now you.” Cole smiled earnestly at Kai, a sudden rush of relief flooding over him. He hadn’t understood just how much he cared about losing his friends because of his sexuality until now. Cole tilted his head at Kai and asked, “What about you?”

Kai was honestly a little surprised, he'd thought that maybe Jay would be in the loop as they're best friends.  
His heart hurt a little at how alone Cole must've felt, stirring his noodles absentmindedly, he thought for a moment before replying.

"Skylor, as you know. She, well, _We_ found out about it when we were dating. Nya and Lloyd know, too. Siblings and all hah."  
He rubbed the back of his neck a bit awkwardly.

"That's good," Cole replied honestly. He was glad Kai was able to tell people. He knew how hard it could be trying to figure oneself out all alone. "You found out sort of recently, then," Black observed, taking a large bite of noodles in an attempt to finish them off quickly. He hated to see good food go to waste.

Having already taken another bite, Kai hummed in conformation around his mouthful.  
Taking a minute to chew and swallow before he continued.  
"Yeah after Sky and I got together it just sorta felt... off yaknow?"

He shrugged awkwardly, one hand waving vaguely.  
"N so we figured out we both sorta play for the other team."  
Pausing again, he cleared his throat as he glanced away.  
"Plus we kinda both had our eyes on other people hah,"

Cole finished his last few noodles and was nodding along attentively until he felt his heart _drop_ at Kai’s last statement. “Oh.” He studied the patterns on his bowl, mind racing yet slowing to a stop at the same time. Of course. Kai liked someone already. _Why did I ever think there was a_ chance— “Did you... did you two get who you wanted?”

No longer feeling hungry as his stomach turned, Kai just stirred what was left of his meal.  
The usually boastful and proud ninja seeming to sink in on himself as he shrugged; the focus on his relationship status from the dude he liked felt like a weird and embarrassing type of torture. 

"Don't think he'd be into me. Probably just sees me as a friend," He continued, now chewing on the end of his chopstick.

Cole almost let out a bitter laugh. Seems they were in the same boat. “That’s ridiculous. You could have anyone you want! You’re kind, charismatic, smart... sometimes.” Cole did laugh this time, but let it die off into a sort of sad silence. _And you’re beautiful. More than you could ever know._

“Trust me,” Cole asserted finally.

"Would you date me?"  
The words tumbled out of his mouth before he could catch them, immediately biting down so hard on a chopstick it. splintered under the force, spitting out the broken wood (thankfully with no damage) Kai added "Theoretically!" with a forced laugh, trying desperately to ignore how much he mirrored Jay when attempting to ask out his sister.  
Awkward and _weird._

Cole looked up sharply at the question, the sound of cracking wood barely registering in his mind as he stared at Kai. He studied every detail of him as if it were the last time he’d be able to. His amber eyes, his lips curled up to reveal especially sharp canines, his ears tinted a light pink from embarrassment. And Cole thought briefly upon everything that he loved about Kai. Hell, everything he loved about Kai _was_ everything. He loved how passionate he was— how he’d do anything and everything for those he cared about. He loved his charmingly loud, abrasive laugh. He loved his warmth, in more ways than his physical powers. He loved holding him. Holding his slender frame and drawing him close, soaking in his heat and feeling the slim of his waist. He was so small. Cole wanted to be able to always protect him. And... He’d give _anything_ to date him.

“Yeah,” Cole answered, the indifference in his voice a blatant lie. “I think I would.”

Kai felt the breath be pulled from his lungs, even with the monotone reply Kai couldn't help the warmth that sparked up in his chest. Taking a steady breath as he looked up at Cole.  
"What..."  
He placed his hands on the table, itching to reach across and hold Cole's - instead curling his hands into fists as he pushed himself to keep talking.  
"What about not-theoretically?"

It took a few seconds for Cole to realize what Kai meant, and when he did it took another few moments for him to make sure he had heard right. Was Kai... asking him out? “...I imagine it’d still be a yes,” Cole said carefully, still doubtful that Kai could possibly be asking what he thought he was in spite of the painfully clear question. His heartrate picked up as he looked at Kai and the other looked right back for the first time since early that morning. He felt dizzy.

“I’m sorry, are you... Did you just— ask me out?”

A large, goofy grin made its way onto Kai's face, a vague attempt to hide it with one hand as he glanced away. Smothering a relieved laugh before he looked back.  
"Yeah- Yeah and I think you're saying yes?"

Kai's entire body was tensed, but not from fear or nervousness.  
He felt if he let his body relax he'd grab Cole's hands or launch himself across the table to hug or kiss the boy.  
Felt like he'd grab onto Cole and never fucking let go.

“H-hoooly shit.” Cole exhaled shakily, closing his eyes while tilting his head back. He took a few seconds to compose himself before exclaiming, “Yes! Hell yes, I’m saying yes.” Cole burst into a fit of delirious laughter as he ran a hand through his hair. Tears of happiness and overwhelming emotion pricked at the corner of his eyes. “Oh my god. You like me. You _like_ me and I like you and now--!” Cole couldn’t stop the wide smile that spread across his face, and he never wanted to.

And without a second thought, Cole stood up, walked over to Kai, and hoisted the smaller man out of his seat. Still laughing, Cole twirled Kai around, setting him gently back on the floor afterwards and pressing their foreheads together.

There were eyes on them, and Cole could’ve sworn he heard clapping. And this time, Cole couldn’t care less about the strangers surrounding them. All he could see was Kai.

Kai felt his own eyes start to water, rubbing at his eyes viciously as he mirrored Cole's laughter.  
Looking up when he heard Black move, he basically launched himself into Cole's arms, letting himself be spun as he tightly wrapped his arms around his friend- his _boyfriends_ neck as his feet finally touched the ground.

He stared into Cole's eyes, searching for something; something even he wasn't sure of before deciding pulling him closer and pressing a kiss to his lips was far more important.  
His eyes fluttering shut as he pushed himself as close as possible to Cole, hands trailing down his shoulders and grasping at the boys shirt; his chest feeling like gooey lava was filling it in the best kind of way.

After making a noise of surprise (which was quickly smothered by Kai’s lips), Cole completely melted into the kiss, arms tightening just slightly around Kai’s waist. His eyes slid shut as well as he tried his best to respond to the other. He was so lightheaded he felt as if he might faint from bliss.

Far too soon, they had to pull away for air. Cole let out a breathless chuckle as he did, gazing into Kai’s eyes which were only inches away. His heart swelled with uncontainable affection and he pressed another quick kiss to Kai’s lips, then his cheek, then forehead until he was peppering kisses all over his face.

Kai took a deep breath when they finally parted, already addicted to the feeling of Cole's lips on his own, why the _fuck_ hadn't he done this sooner.  
Attempting to follow Cole's mouth at the light peck before letting out a whine and embarrassed giggle at the kisses that were littered over his face.

"Cole!" He practically squealed, lightly batting at the larger man.  
"We shoul-" He glanced around, Skylors cocky smile catching his eyes and making him flush.  
"We should sit down," Despite the embarrassment his smile was ever present.

Cole groaned in disappointment, but drew away from Kai after pecking his lips one last time. He had all the time in the world to kiss Kai now, and that knowledge caused his spirits to soar. Cole was the one to grab Kai’s hand this time, pulling him back into the booth with him. He spotted Skylor giving him a thumbs up and laughed, signaling to her that they were ready to pay.

Despite Kai's own words he kept to Coles side, stealing small kisses as he let Cole take his hand, making no intent to sit across from Cole as he waved off Skylor before she could approach.  
"Never said nothin' about leaving yet." he explained, pressing himself to Cole's side within the booth.  
Fingers intertwining with Cole's as he lifted up their hands, placing a gentle kiss against Cole's knuckles affectionately.

Cole chuckled at the tender kiss, the action causing a whole nother flurry of love to stir up inside him. The fire elemental leaned into him, and it felt so surreal Cole had to do a double take. "Am I dreaming?" Cole asked absently, taking their intertwined hands and wrapping his arm around Kai's shoulder.

Kai buried his face into Cole's shoulder, smothering another set of giggles before he looked up at Cole with what could only be described as "heart eyes."  
Pulling roughly at Blacks shirt with his free hand, Kai pressed another kiss on Cole's lips- well, half of his lips. Aim slightly off in his excitement and the awkward position.  
"One hell of a dream," he mumbled against Cole's cheek.


End file.
